The Initiative - A Super Smash Bros Story
by Chefajho
Summary: An abstract being from another reality sprung out of a strange portal. It touched the Triforce, and thus changed the course of Nintendoverse's history. Now, a team of intergalactic heroes is tasked to return their reality to how it once was. Starring: Jumpman Mario, Link Timestriker, Samus Aran, Douglass Jay Falcon, Kirby Starborn, Mr. Game & Watch, Fox McCloud, and Ultra Hands.
1. Chapter 0

Chapter 0

-Karuta's Desire-

Despite all odds against its very own existence, Karuta came through the portal, and survived the ordeal. The nether being floated on the abyss of space, mutating between humanoid and more abstract forms, until its body only consisted of two giant gloved hands that hovered around a moving wall of hanafuda cards.

Karuta was pleased with its new incarnation. It was a breath of fresh air, and a fitting body to match the being's true nature as Master of All Hands.

The suspended wall of moving cards turned sideways, as if it were looking for something in the bright horizon. Then, it saw the source of power. A dim, bright planet in a distant galaxy jutted a string of light that was connected to the now closing portal. Naturally, Karuta followed the bright string to its source.

Millions of years went by, yet Karuta kept the slow pace until the goal was within its reach.

The string of light spiraled around the green planet's periphery, and it stopped right on top of a triangular artifact that was itself made of three golden triangles: the everlasting Triforce. Karuta touched it, thinking that it would be a nice addition to its body of playing cards.

Then, the Nintendoverse collapsed….


	2. Chapter 1 - Fall of the Green Thunder

Chapter 1

\- The fall of the Green Thunder-

Bowser's Castle was crumbling on its foundations for the umpteenth time, but Jumpman and Green Thunder were not afraid of the shortcomings. They kept swinging their mallets and stomping the myriad of koopas that flooded the Throne Room, until there was only one left standing.

"This is the last time we meet, Mario Brothers…", roared the colossal Bowser as he approached the plumbers with bloodshot eyes.

"If only it were true, King Koopa", answered Green Thunder while twisting his jade cap back to frontal position, revealing a large 'L' on it.

"Give us back the princess, and no harm will come to you", said the red-capped Jumpman while lowering his heavy mallet to the floor.

"I am so sorry to break it down to you, but Princess Toadstool is in another castle, and I am here to feast on your failures", chuckled Bowser.

Locked in position were the three warriors, then the battle commenced. Both mallets hit the horns of the fiendish beast and swirled back into the hands of the heroes. The large monster grabbed the protruding bones on its head and howled in agony, swinging his tail around while hitting everything on its path. Jumpman bounced on time, but Green Thunder did not. The intense hit made the flailing brother travel about a dozen meters away from Jumpman and King Koopa, then fall into the lava pit while unconscious.

"Noooo!", yelled the shocked Jumpman.

His younger brother, the only one that knew him best, was gone.

Jumpman turned to the hurt monster with tears on his bright blue eyes, grabbed the remaining mallet on the floor, and performed the most acrobatically-intense barrage of attacks that the world had ever seen. Mallets torpedoed a few of the hardened scales of Bowser and jutted them out of their respective places. Flaming kicks disabled one of Bowser's clawed hands, and fire fists pummeled the villain until the giant lizard lay belly up on the floor. Rage, despair, and deep sadness clouded the plumber's vision.

"Wait, Jumpman! Don't do this!", yelled the numbed Bowser, "I can give you the princess back. Just give me another chance!".

"I… I gave you all the chances you needed to turn a new leaf. Yet, you reveled in bad acts".

"I am in dire need of Princess Toadstool, Jumpman. She is the only one that can save the Koopa Kingdom from being destroyed. Please, help us".

"Lies, Bowser! Lies! All your life has been nothing but a constant stream of lies!", said Jumpman while raising both mallets on top of King Koopa's wide-opened eyes.

"Stop, Mario! Leave him alone! He is not the enemy!", shouted a deep male voice far behind the plumber.

Jumpman turned his head and saw two figures near the lava pit. The faint light of the molten rocks barely lit them, but he could make out the somewhat canine physiognomy of the taller one and the infantile proportions of the second person.

"My name is Fox McCloud, and this is my friend, Mr. Game and Watch", said the tall figure.

"I have no business with performers, right now. Leave us", spit back Jumpman as he slowly lowered the mallets once more.

"This concerns your brother, Mario. He is now wreaking havoc in distant worlds".

"My brother just fell into the lava pit behind you…. You have the wrong person", declared Jumpman as some of his tears reached his puffy moustache.

"I beg to differ, Mario. The Green Thunder is very much alive and evil. He is the leader of a group called the Deadly Brotherhood".

"If you ever say his name again, I will make sure you do not come back from that lava pit", said Mario.

"I will spell it as many times as necessary, Jumpman Mario. This concerns all of us".

"You had your chance!", roared Jumpman while quickly turning toward Fox McCloud.

"It doesn't have to be this way! Gee Double U, on your left!", yelled Fox as he leaped in the direction of Mario.

One of the mallets swiveled near the kiddish figure's head, yet it missed the mark by a few inches. The black bidimensional humanoid generated flat hammers of his own and threw them back toward the mallets and the plumber. Mario jumped on top of the paper-like black hammers and delivered a combination of fiery kicks in the air to hit Fox's gunned arm. However, he was not the fastest one.

Fox darted forward in mid-air and hit the plumber's chest with his metallic knee, cutting the air out of Mario. The red plumber slammed to the cobbled floor with his back, eyes wide open and devoid of the fleeting light of consciousness.

"Darn you, Mario, making things harder than they should be", said Fox while facing Bowser, "You there, see that the princess is taken care of, because I won't be here again when Jumpman comes back. You have been warned,".

"Who are you to boss me around, little fox? I am King Bowser, leader of the mighty koopas!", yelled the flailing Bowser while trying to get back on his feet.

"Yeah, yeah, we heard it before. Stop babbling and get on your feet. We are leaving".

Fox dragged Mario closer to Mr. Game & Watch, then pressed a few buttons on his gun before saying:

"Arwing, energize".

A beam of light surrounded them and they disappeared with it.


	3. Chapter 2 - Link Timestriker

Chapter 2

-Link Timestriker-

"Leaving Mario Galaxy in 3… 2… 1… Blast off!", announced Fox as he throttled the ship to near-lightspeed.

The Arwing 2's cockpit was showered with a million light rays, each one coming from a distant solar system that might have been populated in the distant past.

Jumpman Mario woke up on his seat, then turned his big eyes into narrow slits, dazzled by the luminous spectacle.

"My, my, my… You woke up, great Mario", said a blond man who wore green robes and a liberty cap.

Mario thought the young one was in his early teens. Thus, he tried to respond to him as he would with any teenaged toadstool.

"Hello, young man. Who might you be…?".

"My name is Link Timestriker. I am the bearer of the Triforce of Courage, or at least it used to be that way before the Deadly Brotherhood took over".

"Deadly Brotherhood?" repeated Mario while adjusting himself on the uncomfortable seat.

The light rays faded from the interior of the Arwing, and only deep darkness shrouded them for a moment.

"Hey, Gee Double U. Give us some light here, pa'l", said Fox to his copilot.

"In a minute, Fox", responded Mr. Game & Watch with a squeaky voice.

A calming blue light caressed the hats of both Mario and Link while it barely touched the features of Fox and Mr. Game & Watch.

"Um, yes, sir Mario. The Deadly Brotherhood took over the Legendary Galaxy. I myself attempted to challenge them, but the results have been far from effective", continued Link while facing Mario.

"I see, boy… Where are we going, in Toadstool's name?".

"We are moving to the Federation's Galaxy, Mario", said Fox, "I need to convince another two fighters to join the cause".

"Oh, you mean abducting them by force?", responded Mario while giving an angry look at Fox.

"I would not use the word 'abducting', sir", said Link, tacitly. "Mister Fox does not have time to waste. In your case, he had to subdue you, given your rage and apparent loss".

Jumpman gave an icy look to Link and said nothing further for a great portion of the trip.

After a long period of cold silence, Link engaged in a long conversation with Mr. Game & Watch, asking him about the days before the Golden Goddesses came to the Legendary Galaxy. Mario was curious, for he did not know that there were millenarian beings alive up until this point.

"As you can see, it was a simple life. I barely fought dragons or fixed houses. Most of my time was spent playing racquetball, eating nice meals from time to time, and building cities", continued Mr. Game & Watch with squeaky intonations that were somewhat annoying for Mario's ears.

"That is quite honorable, Mr. Game and Watch", replied Link while taking off his elongated, green cap. "I wish I had such a joyful life, but peace never lasts in Hyrule. First came Ganon, then Vaati trailed after him, and then the rogue gallery kept expanding, and expanding, and expanding…".

"It must have been crazy down there", interjected Fox.

"Indeed, it was. If it were not for Zelda, I may have abandoned all hope and escaped the Hylian continent".

"Yet, you never did", said Mr. Game & Watch.

"Yes, I never left…", answered Link as he saddened while looking at the distant red stars of the Federation's Galaxy.

Jumpman saw the bluish eyes of the blond boy, then immediately felt the sadness that coursed through him. He knew that look. It was the same one he gave when the Mushroom Kingdom was once ravaged by the ancient forces of Fawful. Nonetheless, he fought through them with his brother, and managed to win over the course of several years.

"I know what it feels like, dear Link", said Mario.

Link turned his eyes to the plumber while visibly swept in confusion.

"What, sir Mario?".

"Boy, I have gone through many battles and wars, and the result tended to be always the same: a draw between the enemies and us. It may have looked like victories for all the young toadstools, but the deal is that I can only manage to keep the darkness at bay. My brother once tried to hire our archnemeses; however, their fixation on gold and riches removed any code of honor they may have had".

"Where are they now? We might need them!", said young Link with glimmering eyes of hope.

"Who knows, Wario must be raiding a few ancient tombs by now. His brother, Waluigi, eh… he is not the best at keeping promises; sports and bets are his passions, and it is hard to take him away from this vain path".

"But we can convince them to join us for the sake of keeping their riches", continued the passionate Link.

"I tried that route early on, honorable swordsman", said Fox. "It doesn't work with these guys. They need physical proof of whatever we say to them. Wario almost buried me alive on that jungle; Waluigi, he just dared me to race him with the original Arwing".

"And you never accepted Waluigi's challenge?", asked Link.

"It was not worth the trouble. He will just keep challenging me until he has no money left. That one, my friend, is a scoundrel of the worst kind".

Link turned his head between Mario and Fox in complete disbelief. Defeated by his own inquiries, he became silent again, and looked at the Federation's Galaxy. It was now within their reach.

"Repositioning scanners", squeaked Mr. Game & Watch.

"Hands on your laps, Link and Mario. We will have an explosive descent on Zebes. How is the atmospheric temperature down there, Gee Double U?".

"Hot enough to fry a chicken within a few seconds", said Mr. Game & Watch while giving a thumbs up to Link and Mario.

They burst out laughing all the way down to the ancient world of Zebes. It was the first time Mario felt gleeful in a long while.


	4. Chapter 3 - The Deadly Brotherhood

Chapter 3

-The Deadly Brotherhood-

It seemed as if the colossal avian statue before them was meant to attack trespassers, but it never moved. A giant, blue orb was kept tightly on its clawed humanoid hands, which gave goosebumps to Mario on his way to the dark golden interiors of the Temple of Chozodia. He could not wrap his head around the similar statues that they went by.

"Who are these people?", asked Mario while pressing the speakers' button on his space suit. He was trailing behind the other three.

"They, sir Mario, were the Chozo", said Link while attaching the Master Sword and its sheath to a magnet on the back of his green suit. "These legendary people were once very prolific and so knowledgeable that they even crossed galactic distances to preserve their legacies. I 'met' them when I first saw some of their cultural imprints on the Gerudo's Spirit Temple".

"Gerudo?", repeated Mario.

"Dark-skinned and beautiful people from the harshest desert of my homeland, Planet Farore. I miss them…".

"Hmmm… Had a girl waiting for you over there or something?".

"Ha, ha, ha! I once had someone over there. That should be a tale for another day".

"Ah, you are that kind of popular among women… Fair enough,", said Mario before turning his head to Fox McCloud, "Fox, I need to speak to you".

"We will have plenty of time to talk while we wait for her arrival", said Fox as he pressed on his walk toward a cavernous space half a mile away from them.

"Her? Why are we really doing this in the first place?", asked Mario as he leapt from behind Link and reached all the way to Fox's right side.

"Her name is Samus Aran, professional Bounty Hunter of the Galactic Federation. It is almost certain that she will always return to this place both on her birthdays and on her surrogate father's birthdays".

"Surrogate father? What, did she just live among bird-people?"

"Yes, she did. You will see her father's statue very soon".

"How do you know all of this?".

"Mario, I am an old fox. Our good friend over here, Gee Double U, is the best one at performing reconnaissance missions and intel. Never underestimate his skills as a conversationalist and as a fighter".

Mario looked back at Mr. Game & Watch, who was playing a videogame on a clam-shaped, white and orange device. He obviously did not look as the conversationalist type. However, Mario was not in the mood to contradict Fox's claims.

"Does she know about us?", inquired Mario.

"No, but she will…", answered Fox while smiling from behind his fish-bowl-shaped helmet.

They walked for the next 10 minutes without saying a word. The only sounds that echoed all over the temple were the electronic ones from Mr. Game & Watch's box.

Once they entered the cavernous nave, Mario saw more colossal bird-people statues around them. He was terrified by their sight and remembered the time when his brother Luigi inherited a mysterious haunted mansion in the middle of the Forever Forest. The many laughs he had at his brother's expense were now silenced; justice was always served on cold plates.

"Alright. Here we are, folks. I will answer all your questions and may also repeat myself when Miss Aran arrives", said Fox while looking at his companions.

"Well, what in the world is going on with my brother? Why am I part of all of this?", asked Mario right away.

"As I said before, your brother is the current leader of a group known as the Deadly Brotherhood. Their team members have been picked from distant galaxies and have been subduing a thousand worlds ever since. We do not know why they do it, but we know the how, the when, and the where".

"I need a lot more proof to put my brother on my blacklist. He is one of the most adorable persons I have ever come across, and his loyalty to the Mushroom Kingdom is second to none. I have dealt with his demons in the past, and none of them involved conquering other races".

"Well, Mr. Mario, I am afraid to inform you that The Green Thunder is now on the Galactic Federation's Wanted List", interjected Mr. Game & Watch. "And if Samus Aran ever laid eyes on him, she will certainly capture and process him as a criminal".

"You are just making things harder here. Who says that I would not turn on you for the sake of my brother?", said Mario with the frown he gives to his enemies.

"You would not do that if you knew that Luigi was the one that sent Princess Toadstool to King Koopa in the first place", bolted back Mr. Game & Watch.

Mario's eyes were left wide open. Link also seemed shocked by the reveal.

"What did you just say?", asked the plumber as he materialized both mallets on his hands.

"There is no need to fight, right now,", said Fox, "Show him the footage, Gee Double U".

The black bidimensional being opened the orange box and pressed a few buttons on it. From the clam-shaped artifact came out a huge holographic image that showed King Koopa surrounded by a team of six individuals. The Green Thunder was among them.

"Wait, Ganondorf?! I thought he was sealed within the Twilight Realm!", ejaculated Link, who seemed as shocked as Mario was.

"Listen to the footage, first. We will have time to discuss it", said Fox. "Play it, Gee Double U".

Mr. Game & Watch played the scene and left the orange box on the middle of the circle formed by his comrades.

The image continued to show Bowser sitting on his large throne. In front of him was the Green Thunder with newly made black attires, followed on the right by a tall red-haired and green skinned man dressed with black armor. On the left of both men was a red-capped young lad of about 17 years old, which happened to be playing with a strange red and white ball while the others were talking. Further to the left were another three beings that could be best described in the following order: a blue avian humanoid with a gun eerily similar to Fox's weapon, a small human kid of about 7 years old who wore a red cap and had a shirt with alternating red and yellow stripes, and a round armored creature who wore a dark blue cape and was always swinging his large, distorted golden sword.

"What brings you in front of the king of all?", asked King Koopa while sneering to the green-capped man.

"We come in the name of Ultra Hands. He demands his tithes or else your planet will be ravaged once again", croaked the green-capped man with a lot of malice in his voice.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha! Green Thunder, you really are outperforming yourself. Stop this nonsense and crawl back to your brother's hut", continued King Koopa while looking at the young man with the red and white ball bouncing on his hand.

"My name is Mister L, leader of the Deadly Brotherhood, and I have no siblings", said the green-capped man while igniting his white-gloved fists with spooky green flames.

"You cannot fool me underneath that new black mask and robes of yours, Luigi. Your act ends now".

Mr. L gave a barrage of punches to the beast's gut, then stopped to let the creature breathe.

"Darn you... Missster L...", said King Koopa before coughing a few small flames.

"Since you seem to have no payment, I will have to tell my overlord about it. He is not as forgiving as I am", said Mr. L while toning down the green flames on his gloves.

"Wait! What kind of payment does he require? I have sacred treasures all over my kingdom".

"You can only give him that which you love the most, and he will leave you be until the next cycle".

"What?! That is unacceptable! Let me speak to him!".

"Those were his orders, King Koopa,", interrupted the red-haired man with a deep and chilling voice,"I just came out from a world of despair. If the great master Ultra Hands can remove me from it, he will most certainly make it worse".

"What in blazes? Who are you, and you, and you three over there?", asked King Koopa before coughing again.

"We are the ones that will make you pay every time we visit. You can call me Ganondorf", said the red-haired man. "This young man here goes by the name 'Trainer', the kid over there is Ness, the bird-man is Falco, and the armored fellow goes by the name 'Meta Knight'".

"Aha, ha, ha! Remember their names and faces, because you will see at least one of them every three years", said Mr. L while laughing.

"T-Trainer, Falco, Ness, Meta... Meta...", said King Koopa as he looked at each of them.

"Meta Knight", replied the armored being in a strong, but mechanical voice.

"Meta Knight, and Ganon...dorf".

"You can also call me Ganon if the long form is too hard for your lizard brain".

"Understood, Ganon".

"You know, I think that I should let it slide this time; since you were able to remember our names. We brought you a gift from afar", said Mr. L while turning to the young man called Trainer.

Trainer stopped bouncing the red and white ball, then pressed a small button in the middle of it. The ball opened itself like a clam's shell, and a white light emanated from its interior. A young, blonde woman that was dressed in pink robes appeared in front of King Koopa.

"Peach!", said the amazed King Koopa.

"Oh, Bowser!", said Princess Toadstool as she went straight into his arms.

"What is happening?", asked King Koopa.

"We will let you have your most prized possession for the span of three years,", said Mr. L while sneering,"However, you will have to give her back if any of us appears before you, again".

"This is madness! I will tell Jumpman about this".

"If you ever attempt to spill the beans to that dumb plumber, I will personally see your transition into becoming a giant Dry Bones. Did you got that, Bowser?", said Mr. L while approaching King Koopa with another flamed fist.

The terrified King Koopa lifted his free arm in front of Princess Toadstool, then asked: "W-What happened to you, Mister L?".

"Nothing that you should know about. Bring us that woman when we come back, and your kingdom will prosper", replied Mr. L while waving at the others.

All six members of the Deadly Brotherhood retreated and disappeared in the shadows, only leaving small traces of purple smoke as they abandoned their scenario.

Shocked by what they just saw, Mario and Link fixed their eyes on their own feet. Mr. Game & Watch turned the device off and wandered around the perimeter, checking for something that Mario had no way to guess about.

"This holotape was filmed with help from the inside,", said Fox, "We cannot reveal who is our double agent, but we can assure you that said person is trustworthy".

Mario looked at him with hope. If his brother was said agent, then there must be a good reason for this ordeal to take place. However, he could not piece together how his brother could have survived the fall into the lava pit and become a nefarious henchman at the same time. What if this was a ruse?

"Since when did my brother become the leader of the Deadly Brotherhood?", asked Mario to Fox.

"I really thought Ganondorf was safely secured in the Twilight Realm...", said Link aloud while looking at Mr. Game & Watch's activities.

"About five years ago", said Fox.

Mario's skin turned ghostly pale. How was it possible that two Luigis were alive at the same time? He knew for a fact that his own brother and him were fixing Fawful's damages to the Mushroom Kingdom up until a few months ago.

"That is impossible. Luigi and I were working together on rebuilding Toadstool Palace and King Koopa's Castle", asserted Mario.

"That's right, you two were on your own galaxy. However, this one... this one came almost as soon as Karuta did".

"Karuta?!", said Link and Mario at the same time.

"Also known as Ultra Hands. He is the one responsible for the perpetual chaos on planet Farore", continued Fox.

"But I saw-", interrupted Link.

"Yes, you saw 'Trainer' damaging Hyrule with his mighty beasts,", said Fox, "However, he is nothing more than a bishop in Karuta's game of chess".

"He was the distraction", concluded the amazed Link.

"Correct. Karuta wanted Ganondorf on his roster ever since he touched the Triforce for the first time".

"The Triforce?", inquired Mario with a confused look on his face.

Fox and Link paused for an instant before they exchanged looks. Link 'asked' with his eyebrows, Fox approved by tilting his head toward Jumpman.

The swordsman took a deep breath and unsheathed the Master Sword from his back. A golden trio of triangles glowed on the base of the blade.

"Our Holy Triforce is a divine object of unimaginable power... It was created by the goddesses Din, Nayru, and Farore; right before they departed to the Distant Nebula. Anyone who touches it shall have its greatest desire fulfilled. However, as a result of those actions, Hyrule will physically reflect those desires".

"Only Hyrule?", asked Jumpman Mario.

"Only Hyrule,", answered Mr. Game & Watch, "She's here...".


End file.
